Loyalty
by rowanrawr
Summary: Despite the mistrust and fear that showed in her eyes, he stayed, watching over her, unable to abandon her in her hour of need. A/L drabble. (Hopefully I haven't copied anyone's work).


Just a little sickly sweet something something to make all the Al/L fans happy. Inspired in part by blood red youth's story, 'Lonely Hearts'.

* * *

Weeks had passed since the attack and though Arra had healed physically, scars still remained mentally and emotionally. She could not sleep peacefully, would not eat unless her mate forced her to, hardly spoke, and – Larten felt this worst of all – would not let him near her.

It had been heartbreaking, watching her struggle through her injuries to try to fend for herself. Every attempt he had made to help she had pushed away. It had made him furious to watch her shrink away from his touch, to see the fear and mistrust in her eyes, the confusion and hurt when he vented his anger, not intentionally at her though it always came across that way.

Larten knew it was not her fault, and he was never angry at _her_, but at the things she had been through and the way they changed her. Arra had never told him outright, but it had become clearer over the years he had known her that vicious attacks from disgusting men had been a somewhat permanent feature in her human life. He could guess from this extreme reaction that it had never happened since becoming a vampire.

He was at a loss. Never in their eight years as mates, and the many more they had spent as friends, had he been unable to help her, to comfort her. She had never been afraid of him, as she was now.

Larten ran a hand over his eyes and sighed, glancing out of the darkening window before his eyes flicked back to his mate, sleeping on the small bed in front of him. Despite her apparent want to be as far away from him as possible while awake, he stood vigil over her while she slept, unable to fully obey her wishes for distance. He slept just as little as she did now.

Arra turned in her sleep, stirring slightly. Larten watched her hands ball into fists, a slight frown on her face as her eyes opened and met his – and for one moment they were warm and trusting and he recognised them – but he stood quickly, knowing that they would turn hard and cold a moment later, unable to see her look at him with such animosity.

"I am going to refill our blood supply," he said with his back to her, his voice soft and gentle despite the anger and hurt he felt bubbling away beneath his skin.

There was no answer, and he risked a glance back as he left the room. His mate had turned back to the wall, curled up under the covers, and he could just see one of her hands clutching the sheets almost in desperation, the knuckles white and the veins prominent. Larten had to resist the urge to stay and offer some comfort, knowing it would only end in rejection.

* * *

Gavner had contacted him while he was collecting blood. Larten had told the younger man about the incident, and had just been informed that his friend would be here as soon as he finished up his current mission. Larten was glad of that. He hoped Gavner would be able to bring Arra back to her usual self.

Larten noted that there was no light coming from their little house as slowly he made his way up the road, but that was nothing unusual. Arra liked to stay in the dark these nights, hiding away from everything. He entered, making a point to bang the door shut and to kick his boots off loudly against the wall. The first night he had left her alone he had returned quietly, not wanting to startle her, but that had backfired. She had been terribly afraid at seeing him suddenly in the doorway and had become even more distant as a result.

He took a moment to locate her, sensing her presence in the living room instead of upstairs. That _was_ unusual. He usually had to force her to move from the bedroom, refusing to bring her food (that she ignored) so that she had to come downstairs. With a sigh, not wanting to rush in and startle her again, he removed his coat and set the bottles of blood on the table before pushing the door open and peering inside.

Arra was just visible on the sofa, curled up, still asleep despite the racket he had made when entering the house. There was something clutched in her hands, and Larten slowly moved closer to see, kneeling on the floor by her head, daring to be a little braver now that her usual non-existent routine seemed to have changed.

The shirt that was bunched up in her hands was an old one of his. She had fallen asleep with it pushed up over her face, only her eyes visible beneath the fabric. A lump rose in Larten's throat at the sight of her vulnerability. Clearly, she was in a different state of mind tonight, and he settled down on the floor next to the sofa to wait for her to wake up.

He dozed off a few times, but always awoke with a start, feeling as though his moment of weakness would cause him to miss something important, until finally sleep overtook him and he let his head rest against the cushion, his hand lying inches away from hers.

* * *

Arra awoke hours later.

Sunlight was creeping in through the curtains, and it silhouetted her mate's outline before her eyes. The usual pang of fear and mistrust shot through her mind as soon as she had come round, but it soon disappeared, leaving a feeling of emptiness and longing behind. She wasn't sure herself what had changed, but she no longer felt the need to put distance between herself and Larten. As she laid her hand over his own she felt afraid that perhaps the constant rejection of his loyalty would have changed his feelings towards her.

Of course her fears were proven wrong when, moments after the contact of their hands, he blinked himself awake and found his old mate staring back at him, no fear or hatred in her eyes. "I'm so sorry," she whispered, linking her fingers between his, feeling tears spring to her eyes.

Larten shook his head slowly and gently stroked her hair back with his free hand, feeling the need to take a moment to assure himself that this wasn't a dream and his Arra really was back with him. She shifted and reached up to lay a hand on his neck, pulling him down slightly, repeating her apology with a shaking voice. With a sigh, he let his head rest against hers, closing his eyes as he felt her mind open up to him again, after so many weeks of silence.

_I love you_, his mind instantly told her as he struggled to process all of the emotions he was receiving from her. There was still fear and pain, and could feel humiliation and shame, feelings that hadn't occurred to him before now. A flash of the night of the attack made its way through and he heard himself growl, anger flowing through him and into her mind at the sight of the vampaneze who had caused his mate so much grief.

_I love you, too_, she told him silently moments later, attempting to still his anger, to bring him back to the here and now. She could feel his mind racing, just as much as her own was, but he calmed considerably after that, feeling the love and longing for him flow into his mind from hers. _I'm sorry_, she tried again, and even in her mind her voice broke and she felt horribly weak.

"Stop apologising," Larten said out loud, his voice soft and low with emotion. "None of this is your fault," and he would have said more but saw that Arra was about to say something, most likely to contradict his words, so he cut her off with a kiss. He was so glad that she actually responded, instead of pushing him away, that he laughed quietly and moved slightly to press a kiss to her brow.

_I need you_, her mind told him. _Will you still help me?_

With a nod and a silent, _Always_, he shifted from the floor and onto the sofa beside his mate, pulling her against his body protectively, his arms and hands falling into their familiar positions around her own body. One more kiss was placed against her brow before she tucked her head under his chin and closed her eyes, feeling safe and complete for the first time in weeks.


End file.
